Gibo reiterates need to get booster shots

Former defense secretary and senatorial candidate Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro has reiterated his call to all Filipinos to get primary and booster shots against COVID-19 as a new wave of infections is observed in some parts of Europe, Asia and America.

Teodoro said the Department of Health has emphasized the need to get booster shots, as primary COVID-19 jabs’ efficacy wanes as early as four months after getting the initial doses.

“Getting a booster shot now becomes more crucial as more parts of the country are placed under Alert Level 1. BPO workers in ecozones will also be returning to their workplaces starting next month,” he said.

“Campaign rallies and other activities are also increasing as the campaigning of local candidates has already started. We can see that mobility is picking up,” he added.

Teodoro, a former Tarlac congressman, said increasing the number of Filipinos getting booster shots may prevent another surge, especially with the upcoming national and local elections.

Resolve WFH issue

Former police chief and senatorial candidate Gen. Guillermo Lorenzo Eleazar has called on the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to act and offer an immediate solution to the issue on the mandatory return to on-site work of employees from information technology-business process outsourcing (IT-BPO) companies.

Eleazar of Partido Reporma reminded the DOLE to think and prioritize the welfare of employees.

“Starting April 1, BPO workers are required to report to their offices despite their plea to suspend the DOLE order and hold a consultation meeting,” he said in Filipino.

The Alliance of Call Center Workers had said a significant number of workers in the IT-BPO sector are considering leaving their jobs because of the regulation.

Turn to cash crops

Meanwhile, UniTeam senatorial aspirant Harry Roque has encouraged farmers grappling with high production costs, soaring fuel prices and low farm gate prices to consider investing in cash crops to improve their earning capacity.

A cash crop and livestock farmer himself, Roque said that rice and other staple farmers could also venture into cash crop farming to increase their income and ultimately raise their standard of living.

He said the buying price for palay (unhusked rice) has become unstable after the rice tariffication law repealed the non-tariff protective measures and the National Food Authority’s role in rice importation.

The former presidential spokesman said farmers run the risk of impoverishment unless they diversify toward crops that offer bigger yields and faster harvest.

Repeal Rice Tariffication Law

For independent senatorial candidate and broadcaster/vlogger Raffy Tulfo, the Rice Tariffication Law should be repealed as it deprives farmers of their livelihood.

“Rice tariffication is a burden to farmers,” Tulfo said in Filipino during an interview with Boy Abunda.

He lamented that some farmers discouraged by the low income from farming were enticed to sell their farmlands to subdivision and commercial developers, seriously affecting the country’s food supply.

In a previous interview, Tulfo questioned whether the P10-billion fund allotted by the law for financial and technical assistance has indeed been given to the farmers.